Tag: krill

A publication of Wild Ocean Whale Society (WOWs)

Transient Orca Hunting

Cover Image: Transient Biggs Killer Whale in Puget Sound on May 31, 2021 Justine Buckmaster, Lynnwood, Washington June is Orca Awareness Month. Orca as apex predators are important in the ecosystem and they are iconic to many of us culturally that live here in British Columbia. Consider ways to help promote their protection and conservation,…
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Dorsal Fins of Orca

Cover Image: Transient Biggs Orca – Rocky T002C1 – travelling by Campbell River Nick Templeman, Campbell River Whale and Bear Excursions Orca were observed in various waterways during the past two weeks. Orca were seen in Malaspina Strait off of Texada Island and up through Sutil Channel, Lewis Channel, and Discovery Passage. These were Transient…
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Humpback Whales Appearing!

Cover Image: Humpback Whale Breaching Michelle Pennell, Powell River, BC Many Humpback whales have been observed in upper Georgia Strait around Campbell River and the south end of Quadra Island. Over half of the sightings received in this period were of Humpback whales. Some of the Humpbacks remained at the surface displaying various behaviours; a…
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Orca spy-hopping!

Cover Image: Tasu – T002C – spy hopping! Nick Templeman, Campbell River Whale and Bear Excursions There have been many sightings of Transient Bigg’s Orca in a number of areas around British Columbia. Some of the Orca were seen hunting, with one occasion Dall’s porpoises were the confirmed prey. On another occasion, Orca were seen…
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Increased sightings of Cetaceans!

Cover Image: Transient Biggs Killer Whale, Lucy (T002C3) Nick Templeman, Campbell River Whale and Bear Excursions The number of sightings of Cetaceans has increased over the past two-week period. The nice sunny weather has lead many to be outdoors; increased activities by a shoreline or by boaters has increased the frequency of sightings. Calmer waters…
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Where are the dolphins?

Cover Image: Pacific White Sided Dolphins escorting the Texada ferry Michelle Pennell, Powell River, BC Pods of Pacific White-Sided dolphins were observed in a few areas but notably, some of these dolphins were off Powell River for consecutive days at the end of March. The pods were of various sizes. Orca are the largest type…
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Pods of Pacific White-Sided Dolphins!

Cover Image: Pacific White Sided Dolpins in front of Powell River Michelle Pennell, Powell River, BC Over the past reporting period, a number of pods of Pacific White-Sided dolphins were observed on different days near Powell River. The pods ranged in size; a few pods were estimated to include 50 dolphins and at least one…
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Only Orca reported!

Cover Image: Orca hugging the shore! Garry Henkel, Aboriginal Journeys Whale and Grizzly Bear Tours Over the past two weeks, only sightings of Orca were received. Of those sightings, most of them were of Transient Orca and there was one confirmed sighting of Northern Resident Orca. These Orca were mainly observed around Powell River, Campbell…
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Let’s Celebrate on World Whale Day!

Cover Image: Transient Biggs Killer Whale near Gabriola Island AP, Gabriola Island, BC World Whale Day is on February 21 this year! It is a day for individuals to really appreciate the intelligence, magnificence, and beauty of these marine mammals from the smallest porpoises to the largest whales. In the waters around British Columbia, over…
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Observing Whales from Land

Cover Image: Large pod of dolphins close to shore! Michelle Pennell, Powell River, BC Many people think whale-watching means getting onto a boat and going out to sea to observe dolphins, porpoises, and whales. However, another way to see these wonderful animals is from land! Cetaceans can be seen from land from many locations here…
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How to Spot Whales in Stormy Seas

Cover Image: Pod of Pacific White Sided Dolphins near Powell River Michelle Pennell, Powell River, BC When winter weather rolls in, it can be challenging to see the whales that still transit and feed in our waters. Baleen whale blows, such as Humpback, are generally quite a tall plume with a bit of a circle…
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Humpback Blows during Sunset!

Cover Image: Humpbacks singing at sunset Susan MacKay, Wild Ocean Whale Society Another year is finished and we are happy to let 2020 go into the sunset. We look forward to a better year in 2021 and from all of us in our organization, we wish you and your loved ones a Happy New Year!Many…
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Humpbacks Breaching!

Cover Image: Humpback Whale, Geometry, Breaching Susan MacKay, Wild Ocean Whale Society A behaviour observed in Cetaceans is breaching. Humpback whales are among the species of Cetaceans that breach and one of the few species that breach regularly. A breach is when a whale is able swim rapidly towards the surface of the water and…
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Whales Look Around Too!

Cover Image: Transient Biggs Killer Whales – T002Cs – spyhopping! Nick Templeman, Campbell River Whale and Bear Excursions A behaviour observed in Cetaceans is spyhopping. Spyhopping is when a Cetacean is able to rise to the surface vertically and raise its head out of the water, such as the Orca in our cover image. This…
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Cetaceans during Autumn!

Cover Image: Transient Biggs Killer Whale Garry Henkel, Aboriginal Journeys Whale and Grizzly Bear Tours Autumn brings many visible changes around us on land and in the sea. Some species of Cetaceans may be moving as their prey moves to different locations with the onset of Fall. Other species may be migrating to warmer waters…
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Humpbacks Breaching!

Cover Image: Humpback calf breaching! Jos Krynen, Eagle Eye Adventures Many Humpback whales are still travelling around inland waterways and many of them can be seen easily from shore. Of the 116 sightings received, 89 of them were of Humpback whales. Many of the Humpback sightings reported the whales were breaching, some multiple times. A…
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Smaller Cetaceans Are Important Too

Cover Image: Young Pacific White Sided Dolphin Nick Templeman, Campbell River Whale and Bear Excursions When we look at our ocean ecosystem as a whole, it may be easy to forget about the little guys. We don’t. All whales, dolphins and porpoise that are within our oceans play a huge part in the balance, as…
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Identifying Individual Whales

Cover Image: Constellation the humpback breaching! Nick Templeman, Campbell River Whale and Bear Excursions Identifying individual animals is something of a learning curve and even those of us who are used to doing IDs over many years can have difficulty at times. Photographic evidence is extremely important to confirm an ID. With Humpback Whales, the…
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What and How Humpback Whales Eat

Cover Image: Humpback Whale with Pink Krill Blow Michelle Pennell, Powell River, BC Humpback Whales are baleen whales. Baleen, instead of teeth, is formed in fine strands from keratin. Keratin is the same substance your body uses to create fingernails, hair and even some of your skin. Like fingernails, baleen becomes flexible when wet allowing…
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Many Transient Orca and an Appearance by Southern Resident Orca

Cover Image: Bigg’s hunting a seal lion off of Mitlenatch Island Garry Henkel, Aboriginal Journeys Whale and Grizzly Bear Tours Transient Orca have been sighted in various waterways from Malaspina Strait and Georgia Strait up through to Calm Channel and Discovery Passage. On at least two occasions, Transient Orca were observed actively hunting their prey.…
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Travelling Distances of Whales

Cover Image: Transient Bigg’s Killer Whale spyhopping near Junction Point Garry Henkel, Aboriginal Journeys Whale and Grizzly Bear Tours Over the past two weeks, many Orca have appeared in various inland waterways from the mouth of Knight Inlet in the north to Howe Sound in the south. Many of these Orca were identified as Transient…
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Orca in Many Waterways

Cover Image: Bigg’s surfacing together heading around Harwood Island Spit Michelle Pennell, Powell River, BC Orca have appeared in many waterways such as Nodales Channel, Discovery Passage, Malaspina Strait, Howe Sound, and surprisingly in Sechelt Inlet. Many of these Orca are the Transient Orca (mammal-eating Orca) and some observers were able to see them hunting…
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Spring and Cetaceans have arrived!

Cover Image: Transient Orca by Separation Head on Quadra Island Jerry Weldon, Campbell River, BC Spring has arrived and so have the Cetaceans! Cetaceans have been observed with a higher frequency during the past couple of weeks, and will continue to increase as the season progresses. Sunny and calm weather certainly makes it easier to…
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Orca Galore!

Cover Image: One of the oldest Bigg’s male, T087, heading north near Black Creek Garry Henkel, Aboriginal Journeys Whale and Grizzly Bear Tours Over the past two weeks, Orca have appeared as far south as the Sunshine Coast near Gibsons and as far north as Phillips Arm. Some of them were identified as Transient Orca…
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Dolphins and Bigger Dolphins

Cover Image: Pacific White Sided Dolphins jumping about on a foggy day Garry Henkel, Aboriginal Journeys Whale and Grizzly Bear Tours Starting on Valentine’s Day, a number of Pacific White-Sided dolphins appeared off of Powell River, and many of them were spotted on and off for over a week between Powell River and Texada Island.…
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Lots of Orca Around

Cover Image: Northern Resident Orca heading north past a snowy Grief Point Michelle Pennell, Powell River, BC Northern Resident Killer Whales, the A23s and possibly even some others have made an appearance this winter. This is not a common yearly practice for them. Last year around this time we only confirmed the A42 family up…
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Whale Tails

Cover Image: Orcas tail slapping in unison Jos Krynen, Eagle Eye Adventures An exciting part of whale watching is seeing the tails (called flukes) of whales coming out of the water as the animals dive. Some whales like to perform tail slaps, that is an animal will raise its tail out of the water and…
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Weather and Whales

Cover Image: Two Killer Whales breaking the surface for a breath Jos Krynen, Eagle Eye Adventures Weather seems to play a part in the number of reports that come in to our system, and we have had weather. Between storms, downpours, and fog, we still managed a few beautiful days to see whales and dolphins.…
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Whales Wave and Celebrate With Us

Cover Image: Humpback fluking off of Powell River Westview Harbour Michelle Pennell, Powell River, BC Happy New Year! Whales and dolphins have been sighted around Nanaimo, Powell River, Lund, and waterways around Johnstone Strait. Many of these sightings took place from land; with patience and diligence in scanning waterways from land, one can often see…
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Holiday Greetings with Storms and Whales

Ever wonder what whales do during stormy weather? So do we, but what we have seen, is how some appear to enjoy playing in rough seas. We’ve seen Humpbacks crash head on into waves over and over, which may be a good method, as is breaching, to rid themselves from any parasites. Orca, being a…
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